Halo 3 Forum
This topic has moved here: Subject: The Halo Engines
  • Subject: The Halo Engines
Subject: The Halo Engines

Halo: CE's engine was Bungie's. Halo 2's was, but then it had to be scrapped because they couldn't get it to run on a retail Xbox. Halo 3's is supposed to be by Bungie's own design.

Hope that helped. :)

  • 01.09.2007 5:42 PM PDT

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Posted by: jmh9072
Halo: CE's engine was Bungie's. Halo 2's was, but then it had to be scrapped because they couldn't get it to run on a retail Xbox. Halo 3's is supposed to be by Bungie's own design.

Hope that helped. :)


Hmm? Halo 2 engine wasn't scrapped, I thought the graphics were just toned down. The lighting effects on that E3 demo owned though.

[Edited on 1/9/2007]

  • 01.09.2007 5:45 PM PDT

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Posted by: impurity
From what my guessing and fading memory can recall, Halo had its own engine. Halo 2 only used the Havok physics engine. Halo 3, I'm probably wrong, is going to have a new one written by Bungie.

This topic is probably better suited for the Underground or Halo 3, btw.


I was never sure. Thanks tho, I'll keep that in mind.

  • 01.09.2007 5:46 PM PDT

Halo 3 will be rebuilt from the ground up... Its a different hardware configuration so it needs different instuctions at the low level. Sure they might reuse some of the high level logic but it will have to most likely be rewritten

  • 01.09.2007 7:23 PM PDT

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Posted by: CrazyCanuck41
Halo 3 will be rebuilt from the ground up... Its a different hardware configuration so it needs different instuctions at the low level. Sure they might reuse some of the high level logic but it will have to most likely be rewritten


Er, uh... what?

  • 01.09.2007 7:27 PM PDT
Subject: The Halo Engines

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I was wondering, if anybody knows (and would like to back up said knowledge with proof), how the Halo engines are built? For instance, Halo 1 was made from the ground up, I believe. Halo 2, again my belief, improved upon the Halo engine but was not entirely new in itself. My real question, the one I would like answered the most, is about the Halo 3 engine. Is it a new one, built from the ground up, or an improvement on the original engine? Seeing as it is being designed for a new console that is incredibly more powerful that the Xbox, I'd assume it's being built from the ground up. Anybody know?

PS: No really reason behind these questions, just a quest for knowledge ;-)

  • 01.09.2007 5:32 PM PDT

From what I've picked up... The Halo: Combat Evolved engine was written in C from scratch by Bungie. The Halo 2 engine was built off of the Halo: Combat Evolved engine, but modified to compile with a C++ compiler (wish I could find the reference) and used the Havok Physics middleware, as impuriyty said. Halo 3, I'm guessing, is basically going to be the Halo 2 engine but modified to take advantage of all the extra headroom that the Xbox 360 has to offer.

It's highly unlikely that they would have to rebuild the engine from the ground up. Just change some stuff... The processor architectures are different, but half of that problem can be solved by the compiler.

[Edited on 1/9/2007]

  • 01.09.2007 7:30 PM PDT

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Some threads will get posts before others and it is the duty of the Leadership to ensure that posts are made that best suit the public welfare.

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Halo 2 ran on the HAVOC engine, buddy.

  • 01.09.2007 7:33 PM PDT

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Posted by: the squee masta
Halo 2 ran on the HAVOC engine, buddy.


Hope you know that Havok is a physics engine.

  • 01.09.2007 7:40 PM PDT

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Posted by: RidiculousX
From what I've picked up... The Halo: Combat Evolved engine was written in C from scratch by Bungie. The Halo 2 engine was built off of the Halo: Combat Evolved engine, but modified to compile with a C++ compiler (wish I could find the reference) and used the Havok Physics middleware, as impuriyty said. Halo 3, I'm guessing, is basically going to be the Halo 2 engine but modified to take advantage of all the extra headroom that the Xbox 360 has to offer.

It's highly unlikely that they would have to rebuild the engine from the ground up. Just change some stuff... The processor architectures are different, but half of that problem can be solved by the compiler.


The processor is actually what I was mainly wondering about. Seeing as the Xbox was single core, single thread, I was wondering how they could possibly run the Halo 2 engine on the 360 efficiently. It seems to make more sense to me to build it from the ground up. Financials aside, re-using the Halo 2 engine just doesn't make sense to me, but again, I've heard things such as the Doom 3 engine still technically being based of the Quake engine. So, I guess it's not that crazy.

  • 01.09.2007 7:45 PM PDT
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Posted by: Caboose413
I was wondering, if anybody knows (and would like to back up said knowledge with proof), how the Halo engines are built? For instance, Halo 1 was made from the ground up, I believe. Halo 2, again my belief, improved upon the Halo engine but was not entirely new in itself. My real question, the one I would like answered the most, is about the Halo 3 engine. Is it a new one, built from the ground up, or an improvement on the original engine? Seeing as it is being designed for a new console that is incredibly more powerful that the Xbox, I'd assume it's being built from the ground up. Anybody know?

PS: No really reason behind these questions, just a quest for knowledge ;-)


Bungie has stated the Graphics engine is being built from the ground up. I don't know about the other components of the Halo engine. I would guess that they are also being created from the ground up.

  • 01.09.2007 8:04 PM PDT

yea i guess i got a little to technical wit that last post... my bad

Anyways new hardware means u have give the processor different instuctions so they ahve to rewrite all of that... Graphics engine will be rebuilt ground up for the new hardware... I think they will most likely stick wit Havok for physics.... No need to write a new physics engine when it worked so well for halo 2

  • 01.11.2007 2:40 PM PDT
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Wasn't the Halo 3 Engine described as a modified HAVOK Engine? I recall that from somewhere.

  • 01.11.2007 2:41 PM PDT
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Um, isn't havok just a physics engine?

  • 01.11.2007 2:46 PM PDT
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Im pretty sure it is a HAVOK PHYSICS engine in halo 2. Not a HAVOK physics engine. Its not just physics, thats just what it is called. Im not sure though.

[Edited on 1/11/2007]

  • 01.11.2007 3:09 PM PDT
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Posted by: I MJ0LNIR I
Im pretty sure it is a HAVOK PHYSICS engine in halo 2. Not a HAVOK physics engine. Its not just physics, thats just what it is called. Im not sure though.


Havok is just a middleware physics engine. When developers don't want to develop their own physics from scratch they can buy havok and "plug" it into the game engine to handle physics. Havok was also used in Fear (built with the lithtech engine I believe) and Oblivion.

I'm 99.34% sure about all that.

Anyway I hope halo3 still uses havok, the physics in all the games that use havok has left me very impressed.

  • 01.11.2007 3:33 PM PDT
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Posted by: Flood Fodder
Posted by: I MJ0LNIR I
Im pretty sure it is a HAVOK PHYSICS engine in halo 2. Not a HAVOK physics engine. Its not just physics, thats just what it is called. Im not sure though.


Havok is just a middleware physics engine. When developers don't want to develop their own physics from scratch they can buy havok and "plug" it into the game engine to handle physics. Havok was also used in Fear (built with the lithtech engine I believe) and Oblivion.

I'm 99.34% sure about all that.

Anyway I hope halo3 still uses havok, the physics in all the games that use havok has left me very impressed.
It was also in Sonic The Hedgehog. :P

  • 01.11.2007 3:41 PM PDT
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Posted by: Flood Fodder
Posted by: I MJ0LNIR I
Im pretty sure it is a HAVOK PHYSICS engine in halo 2. Not a HAVOK physics engine. Its not just physics, thats just what it is called. Im not sure though.


Havok is just a middleware physics engine. When developers don't want to develop their own physics from scratch they can buy havok and "plug" it into the game engine to handle physics. Havok was also used in Fear (built with the lithtech engine I believe) and Oblivion.

I'm 99.34% sure about all that.

Anyway I hope halo3 still uses havok, the physics in all the games that use havok has left me very impressed.


Are you sure that your 99.34 percent sure, and not 99.42 % sure, lol.

  • 01.11.2007 4:33 PM PDT
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Posted by: RidiculousX
From what I've picked up... The Halo: Combat Evolved engine was written in C from scratch by Bungie. The Halo 2 engine was built off of the Halo: Combat Evolved engine, but modified to compile with a C++ compiler (wish I could find the reference) and used the Havok Physics middleware, as impuriyty said. Halo 3, I'm guessing, is basically going to be the Halo 2 engine but modified to take advantage of all the extra headroom that the Xbox 360 has to offer.

It's highly unlikely that they would have to rebuild the engine from the ground up. Just change some stuff... The processor architectures are different, but half of that problem can be solved by the compiler.


I have never understood C and C++ and all that. it's a program creater or something right? and if it is what will halo 3 be made with?

  • 01.11.2007 4:35 PM PDT
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Posted by: Caboose413
Posted by: RidiculousX
From what I've picked up... The Halo: Combat Evolved engine was written in C from scratch by Bungie. The Halo 2 engine was built off of the Halo: Combat Evolved engine, but modified to compile with a C++ compiler (wish I could find the reference) and used the Havok Physics middleware, as impuriyty said. Halo 3, I'm guessing, is basically going to be the Halo 2 engine but modified to take advantage of all the extra headroom that the Xbox 360 has to offer.

It's highly unlikely that they would have to rebuild the engine from the ground up. Just change some stuff... The processor architectures are different, but half of that problem can be solved by the compiler.


The processor is actually what I was mainly wondering about. Seeing as the Xbox was single core, single thread, I was wondering how they could possibly run the Halo 2 engine on the 360 efficiently. It seems to make more sense to me to build it from the ground up. Financials aside, re-using the Halo 2 engine just doesn't make sense to me, but again, I've heard things such as the Doom 3 engine still technically being based of the Quake engine. So, I guess it's not that crazy.


If you've played Quake you should realise it has glichy and unsmooth gameplay and not much people like it. Plus its even freezes sometimes when it gets bumpy in the gameplay.

  • 01.11.2007 5:12 PM PDT
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Posted by: Tennizzil
I have never understood C and C++ and all that. it's a program creater or something right? and if it is what will halo 3 be made with?

C and C++ are programming languages. C is a good language, but it's not optimum for very large programs (i.e. several hundred thousand lines of code) because it is a procedural language. Halo 2 and Halo 3 are written in C++ because it has some object-oriented capabilities (which makes it much better for very large programs) while still retaining C's low level features.

And Havok is a physics "engine", not a game engine.

  • 01.11.2007 5:25 PM PDT
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If the engine was new you would see alot of different things in the video

  • 01.11.2007 5:51 PM PDT